


reconnect

by perfectlyrose



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Friendship, Gen, M/M, Post-Season/Series 08 Finale, Pre-Relationship, VLD Epilogue Compliant, meeting again after a long time, with a chance for more here in this weird post-war world
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-24
Updated: 2019-04-24
Packaged: 2020-01-31 11:17:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,853
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18590161
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/perfectlyrose/pseuds/perfectlyrose
Summary: He's one of the last people Keith expects to see in the middle of liberating a Galra prison, mostly because he thought he was dead.Keith freezes as he realizes that the words aren't filtering through his translator. They're being spoken in English, in a familiar, impossible voice. He zeros in on the lone human in the line and his mouth drops open.“Hello? I know you can understand me,” he says. Keith wants to laugh at the annoyed look on his face. Of course, after everything, his patented expression of scathing disapproval would still be intact.Keith hits the release on his mask, letting it retract. “Adam?”





	reconnect

**Author's Note:**

  * For [benicemurphy](https://archiveofourown.org/users/benicemurphy/gifts).



> for murphy who prompted me with "Kadam, Adam didn't die but was captured by the Galra and Keith finds him post-canon with his work with the Blades"
> 
> hope you like it darling!

It's been a year and three months since the end of the war when Keith's team infiltrates a still-operating Galra prison three galaxies away from Earth. Their intel says it was used by a number of the post-imperial warlords for political prisoners and apparently no one gave them the memo that the warlords were dead.

Neutralizing the guards is one of the easier missions his team has encountered lately and everything is running smooth as butter.

“Shuttles clear to land. Prisoners will be exiting shortly,” he says into his comm, jogging towards the closest cell block. Most of the cells are already open and the freed prisoners are lining up to be led out to the shuttle's, quietly talking among themselves, disbelieving.

“Where exactly are you taking us?” One voice asks, suspicion dripping from every word. “How do we know you're not just taking us to another prison or one of the work camps?”

Keith freezes as he realizes that the words aren't filtering through his translator. They're being spoken in English, in a familiar, impossible voice. He zeros in on the lone human in the line and his mouth drops open.

“Hello? I know you can understand me,” he says. Keith wants to laugh at the annoyed look on his face. Of course, after everything, his patented expression of scathing disapproval would still be intact.

Keith hits the release on his mask, letting it retract. “Adam?”

Adam squints at him, glasses missing, and then does a double take. “ _Keith?_ ”

Keith huffs out a farce of a laugh. “Yeah, it's me.”

“Oh my God, what are you doing out here?”

Keith barrels forward and pulls Adam into a tight hug, releasing him after a couple of seconds and stepping back, not quite out of his space but enough. His hand lingers on Adam's bicep.

“Should be asking you that. We all thought you were dead,” Keith says. “You're on the memorial wall back at the Garrison and everything.”

“Not dead. Sendak captured me and decided I was a decent enough pawn. Ended up transferred around a handful of ships before landing here. Wherever here is,” he says acidly. “You've been back to the Garrison, though? And you voluntarily came back out here?”

Keith quirks a smile at him. “You know I was never good at staying at that place.”

Adam laughs. “That's true.”

“Commander? The shuttles are here,” Thrulk, his lieutenant interrupts to tell him.

Keith snaps his spine straight and turns to face him. “Start escorting everyone to them. As soon as a shuttle's full, they're clear to take off. We'll rendezvous at Base Delta 4 and start sorting out who needs to go where.”

“Yes, Commander.” Thrulk lingers and Keith knows his curiosity is burning.

“He's a friend from Earth,” Keith explains quickly, voice quiet. “Thought he was dead in Sendak's initial attack.”

Thrulk nods. “Will he be travelling with you?”

Keith was planning on flying their infiltration ship back to base solo. He nods. “Yeah, he'll stay with me.”

Thrulk nods again and walks off to relay orders.

“Commander, huh?” Adam says, eyebrow raised.

Keith feels his cheeks flush and wishes his mask was up to hide it. He motions for Adam to step to the side so his team could work. “Yeah. I'm permanently with the Blades of Marmora now. Have my own team, lead my own missions. Have a couple of other teams under my command too.”

“Impressive.”

Keith gives him a mischievous look. “You should've seen Iverson's expression the first time he heard someone call me Commander.”

Adam laughs, reaching out to steady himself with a hand to Keith's shoulder. “Oh, that had to be priceless.”

“It was. He'd already had to deal with me being Leader of Voltron but he could ignore that since it didn't fit neatly into the hierarchy. Commander though…”

“Leader of Voltron? Sam briefed us but I thought Takashi was…” he trails off.

“He was. There was a lion switch that happened and I ended up in the Black Lion, and therefore team lead. You know the Atlas? That Sam was building?” Adam nods. “Shiro's her Captain. Managed to turn her into a mech and everything.”

“He's alright?” he asks carefully.

“Doing great.” Keith says. His voice is flat and he knows it, but he can't fix it. He shoots a sideways glance at Adam, noting that they're the same height now. “Disease is gone. Space magic and some stuff I can fill you in on later. He, um, he just got married about two months ago.”

Adam digests that for a minute in silence. “Good for him. I hope he's happy, he deserves to be.”

Keith nods.

“So, what happened? You were with Voltron but not anymore? Sam told us that you and the other cadets were with Voltron but the last rumor I heard was that Voltron was missing.”

“Good to know your ear for gossip is still kicking,” Keith teases. It's easy to talk to Adam in way it didn't use to be, in a way it hasn't been with anyone recently. “We were missing for a few decapheobs. Time slippage between us and the rest of the universe.”

Adam's hand twitches like he wants to push up the glasses he's not wearing. “I'm not sure I want to know.”

“Space is weird,” Keith deadpans.

“I've started feeling like McCoy at the beginning of one of the Star Trek movies,” Adam admits. “‘Space is disease and danger wrapped in darkness and silence.’”

Keith snorts. “Nerd.”

Adam elbows him. “You were the one who wanted to watch it all the time. It wasn't even one of the best Trek movies.”

“Kirk and Spock are both hot in that one,” Keith defends.

“Well, you're not wrong,” Adam concedes.

They're quiet for a minute, watching the prison empty.

“Didn't think I was ever going to get out of here,” Adam admits. “Seemed impossible that I'd ever even see another human.”

“The war's over, Adam,” Keith says gently. “Earth is rebuilding, the Voltron Coalition is spreading peace. The Blades are working to pacify any remaining warlords and start humanitarian efforts where we can.”

“And Voltron itself?”

“Gone,” Keith admits. “The lions left a few months ago.”

“They can… do that?”

“Sentient,” Keith explains with a shrug. “Maybe they'll be back, maybe they won't.”

Adam stares at him. “I'm starting to understand your nonchalance about space being weird.”

Keith raises his eyebrows. “You have no idea. I spent two years in a quantum abyss on the back of a space whale. It was only like, a week for everyone else.”

“You're messing with me.”

“Nope.” He turns to face Adam fully. “Gave me time to get to know my mom.”

Adam's mouth drops open. “You found your mom? In _space_?”

Keith nods. “She's a Blade agent. Super spy who was undercover for a long time. I was sent to extract her.”

Adam stares at him, calculating look on his face. “Are you telling me you're half alien?”

Keith nods. “Half Galra,” he admits.

“Holy shit.” He covers his mouth with one hand. “This explains a lot.”

“Yeah, I know. You don't have to tell me how weird I was as a cadet,” he says with a scowl.

Adam reaches out and grasps his bicep. “Not what I was trying to say,” he says gently, eyes shining with sincerity. “I mean, you were weird but so were Takashi and me. But you've always been stronger than you look and you'd purr when you fell asleep during movie nights.”

“I...purr?”

“Aww, no one ever told you?” Adam moves to ruffle his hair, just starting to get long enough for Keith to consider putting it in a ponytail. “It's cute.”

Keith shrugs, looking down to hide his blush. “Don't really sleep in close quarters with anyone outside of naps on missions. No one to tell me, I guess.”

Adam gives him an indecipherable look. Before he can say anything Keith's comm buzzes.

“Shuttles all loaded,” Thrulk says. “I already sent an update to Leader. See you on base.”

“Fly safe,” Keith answers before hanging up. “Come on,” he says to Adam, “we get the fun ship.”

“I’m suddenly terrified,” Adam deadpans, falling into step next to Keith. “I remember how you fly and I can’t imagine that piloting a sentient robot tempered any of your tendencies.”

Keith laughs. “I flew Red, first. She was the most temperamental and also the fastest.”

“So that’s a no.”

Keith knocks his shoulder against Adam’s. “I’ve seen your sim recordings. Don’t try to tell me that you don’t like a little excitement.”

“I prefer excitement that might not kill me,” he shoots back.

“I’ll get you back to base safely,” Keith promises. “Just got you back from the dead, not risking anything.”

Keith presses his lips together, trying not to think about his track record for recovering people believed to be dead. He’s gotten Shiro back time and time again, got his mom back, but Allura is still gone and it’s an ache that lives in the corner of his heart. He doesn’t know how to move past losing parts of his small and hard-won family.

Adam pulls him to a stop, furrow forming between his brows. “You okay?”

“Yeah, sure,” Keith replies.

“You’re still a terrible liar. Aren’t the Blades an espionage organization?”

“Shut up. If I’m doing my job, no one even knows I’m there. No lying involved.”

“Really though, Keith. You sure you’re okay? Your face went…”

Keith feels his expression twist, more obvious this time. “Just lots of years of war, you know. Don’t usually get people back.”

Adam’s jaw clenches and Keith recognizes the tic from charged moments between him and Shiro. It’s his tell for his emotions being too much or when he’s holding back from saying something.

“You can ask,” Keith prompts, “if you want.”

He cuts to the point, direct as ever now that Keith’s given him the go ahead. “Who’d you lose?”

“Allura.” Keith crosses his arms over his chest, holding himself together. “She… sacrificed herself in the final battle against Honerva. Haggar. Whatever you want to call her. Lost Shiro a couple of times too but I got him back.”

“And now you rescued me, too,” Adam says gently. “It doesn’t make the hurt go away but you’re doing good, Keith.”

“Trying to at least,” Keith admits. He ducks his head to hide behind his bangs, a habit he’s had since before the Garrison and never kicked.

Adam is smiling when he glances back up and it has just enough of a foreign glint to it that it pulls Keith out of his head. “You look good too.”

Keith blinks at him, caught off guard. “Thanks.”

“Come on, you were going to show me why you have the fun ship.”

Keith finds his smile as they walk up the ship ramp. “You think you can handle my version of fun, Weston?”

“I’m willing to find out,” Adam replies.

Keith thinks, as he settles into the pilots chair and watches Adam carefully sit at the co-pilot controls, that he is too.

**Author's Note:**

> find me on [twitter](https://twitter.com/LionessNapping), if you want!


End file.
